Group Progression in Society

The pressures of society force humans into groups, whether to change something, unite, or to feel a sense of belonging. Nonetheless, it can be difficult to find what groups you may fit into and these groups can change as you transform into a more critical thinker. Studs Terkel tells the story a of Ku Klux Klan member turned school board activist, C.P. Ellis, in his essay, “C.P. Ellis.” Ellis’ struggles and realizations prove what critical thinking and self-examination can do. Mike Rose’s essay, “I Just Wanna Be Average” also displays the importance of growing through groups and how changing mental habits can help transform one into a more efficient critical thinker, therefore allowing one to surpass the cultural myths placed upon them. Gary Colombo enlightens readers by defining and giving advice on how to transform oneself into a critical thinker in his essay, “Thinking Critically, Challenging Cultural Myths”. Colombo argues that by thinking critically and challenging the norms of our society we can fight to be the people we truly want to be. Humans form into groups subconsciously as well as consciously. Consequently, these groups we cast ourselves into are the very things that can hold us back from becoming true individuals. By reexamining old ways and becoming active critical thinkers, members of society can participate in groups in a manner which will allow them to grow intellectually and outlast the cultural myths that is society has placed upon them. Groups have a large impact on society since they are constructed to allow humans to do more than they would be able to as mere individuals. However, groups can often hinder the thought process of individuals and may cause people to settle for less than what they are actually capable of. The “cultural myth” of belonging in society can cause individuals to become immersed in a group’s ideas wholly instead of blending them with their own beliefs. Ellis recalls when his former Klansmen called him after he started...

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

...
Assignment 2
Question 1
The first key concept I chose is society, which is described as people who interact in a defined space and shared culture. This definition of society states clearly which variables are used to define and judge something as a society which make up part of the social world.
The second key concept that I chose is sociocultural evolution, which is the process of change that results from a society’s gaining new information. This term showed me the importance of social change and creates separate social periods which the world went through.
The third key concept is New Industrializing Countries (NIC), which are lower-income countries that are quickly becoming high-income ones. This showed me how fickly our social world is and that it is relatively easy to change your ways, if you are able to get the means and have the will power.
The fourth key concept I chose is bureaucracy, which is the model for modern business, government agencies, trade unions and universities. I have heard this term my whole life, but never realized, until now, the importance and influence of bureaucracy in the world.
The last key concept that I chose is rationalization of society, which is the historical change from tradition to rationality as the dominant mode of human thought. This concept helped me understand the humongous changes the social world has gone through. Also that the transition went slowly but...

...prevalent today.” How true is this of your society?
Princess Diana once said, “ The greatest problem in the world today is intolerance. Everyone is so intolerant of each other.” It is indeed true that intolerance is one of the greatest problems faced by the word today. Intolerance refers to lacking the capacity or willingness to recognize and respect the beliefs, practices or traits of others. In the past, there has been uncountable number of incidents of one being prejudiced against another individual who is unlike the majority of the population. For example, in the context of my society, Singapore, intolerance has been displayed towards racial minorities, religious minorities, single mothers, foreigners, the Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender Queer (LGBTQ) community and many other marginalized groups. Some might argue that intolerance of these minority groups is less prevalent in my society today as compared to the past. However, I personally feel that intolerance is still widely seen in my society today, due to the conservative nature of Singaporeans, globalisation and the increasingly competitive Singaporean society.
Some schools of thoughts argue that the intolerance towards those who are different is gradually being reduced today as there are greater opportunities for education that have led to increasing integration of people who are different. Education in...

...INTRODUCTION
Groups are a fundamental part of social life. They can be very small - just two people - or very large. They can be highly rewarding to their members and to society as a whole, but there are also significant problems and dangers with them. All this makes them an essential focus for research, exploration and action.
Just how we define 'group' and the characteristics or ideas we use has been a matter of debate for many years. The significance of collectivities like families, friendship circles, and tribes and clans has been long recognized, but it is really only in the last century or so that groups were studied scientifically and theory developed
As interest in group processes and group dynamics developed and accelerated (most particularly since the 1980s) the research base of the area strengthened. Not unexpectedly, the main arenas for the exploration of groups, and for building theory about them, have continued to be sociology and social psychology. As well as trying to make sense of human behaviour – why people join groups and what they get from them (both good and bad) – the study of groups has had a direct impact on practice in a number of areas of life. Perhaps the most obvious is work – and the contexts and practices of teams. But it has also acted as a spur to development in those fields of education, therapy, social...

...﻿1.0 INTRODUCTION
The social web has become a mediator between the individual and another individual for a particular purpose. Social networking sites can connect the individual, either in the country or abroad. There are many social networking sites that exist and mediate the whole world, as an example of Youtube, Facebook, Twitter, Blogspot and others. With the social web sites like this one, everyone can connect or communicate quickly than ever before prior to the creation of information and communication technologies. Virtually all internet users have at least one social networking site account. It is a phenomenon that affects others whether good or bad.
The existence of social networking sites can tighten the relationship, unite old friends, keep the updates of the activities of leaders, discuss, seek advice, share experiences and tips as well as many other advantages that can be utilized by users of social networking sites. But there's no denying about its misuse by the public. There are some of people were using it as a medium to express dissatisfaction and defamation. This is not the best way of using the social networking sites.
In Malaysia, this phenomenon is not something new. In the past it was only popular among young people but now also received good response from the professionals. This is because, in addition to functioning as an interactive communication channel, the platform is also widely applied for various other purposes like business and politics....

...﻿
Group Process: Refection Paper III
Damaris M. Morel
NJCU
Group Process: Refection Paper III
“Being involved in the process of becoming self is a profound experience of personal choice” (Rogers, 1995, p.205); yet, according to Rogers therapeutic learning should not been teaches, rather it is an issue of personal choice. In the same token, for a group process session to be effective the members need to be genuine, open and willing to trust and express their issues and experiences. Perhaps, no one is perfect in this world, there is always something that bother us; yet if we are all stuck in the same boat of sharing to grow, then why so many members of our group still not sharing anything but taking away from the ones that does? In other words, why so many members are still placing a shield on their faces as not to engage into the therapeutic process of the session, what is there to lose?
It has been nine weeks since we had have embarked in this journey of risking and learning; and yet, many still reluctant to let themselves go to the next stage, they seems scare of being judge, of self-disclosing, of deepening their trust; worst of all, they seems scare of just being on their own skin. I completely understand that is no easy to sit in front of strangers and disclose our deepest though; on the same token, I understand that to...

...product. In the United States, insurers directly employ approximately 2.3 million people, or 1.7 percent of nonfarm payrolls. Separately, more than 2.3 million licensed insurance agents and brokers hold more than 6 million licenses.
The financial performance and condition of U.S. insurers continued to show recovery and improvement from the decline during the financial crisis. In 2012, the U.S. insurance industry reported record aggregate premium levels. Net written premiums in the United States were approximately $645 billion in the life and health (L/H) sector and approximately $460 billion in the property and casualty (P/C) sector.
Tables 1 and 2 provide a snapshot of the L/H sector marketplace, listing the largest ten L/H insurance groups by 2012 direct premiums written and the concentration in terms of premium volume for life insurance (i.e., non-A&H) and for A&H lines of business, respectively.
Exhibit1
Major Employee Relocation Services Companies
Relocation
Parent Organization
Estimated 1978 Home Purchase
Estimated Value of Home Purchase
Estimated Gross Fee Income
Merrill Lynch Relocation
Merrill Lynch
13,000
$975,000,000
$26,800,000
Homequity
Peterson, Howell, & Heather
12,000
900,000,000
24,750,000
Equitable Relocation
Equitable Life Insurance
5,000
375,000,000
10,300,000
Employee Transfer
Chicago Title and Trust
5,000
375,000,000
10,300,000
Relocation Realty Corporation
Control Data...

...responsibility
Clever (intelligent)
Conceptually skilled
Creative
Diplomatic and tactful
Fluent in speaking
Knowledgeable about group task
Organised (administrative ability)
Persuasive
Socially skilled
McCall and Lombardo (1983) researched both success and failure identified four primary traits by which leaders could succeed or 'derail':
Emotional stability and composure: Calm, confident and predictable, particularly when under stress.
Admitting error: Owning up to mistakes, rather than putting energy into covering up.
Good interpersonal skills: Able to communicate and persuade others without resort to negative or coercive tactics.
Intellectual breadth: Able to understand a wide range of areas, rather than having a narrow (and narrow-minded) area of expertise.
Stogdill, R.M. (1974). Handbook of leadership: A survey of the literature, New York: Free Press
McCall, M.W. Jr. and Lombardo, M.M. (1983). Off the track: Why and how successful executives get derailed. Greenboro, NC: Centre for Creative Leadership
The Managerial Grid , Blake and Mouton (1960)
Concern for People
High
Country Club management
Team management
Medium
Middle of the road management
Low
Impoverished management
Authority-compliance
Low
Medium
High
Concern for Production (Task)
Blake, R.R. and Mouton, J.S. (1961). Group dynamics - Key to decision making, Houston: Gulf Publishing Co
Likert leadership styles- LIKERT(...